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Old 06-28-2002, 07:40 PM   #1
Vishnoff
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Default My door won't close

The drivers side door, when you go to close it sits about an inch lower than the car, so the bear claw in the door does not meet up with the bolt in the door. I have to slam the door, or pick it up to get it to close. How they hell do I fix this??? This problem has onloy started recently, and it is frustrating the hell out of me.
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Old 06-29-2002, 11:31 AM   #2
Kisner
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I'd first check the hinges for damage. Sounds like a hinge may have came loose, or one of your hinge bolts could have broken. Did it slowly start sagging over time or was it a sudden drop?
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Old 06-29-2002, 03:31 PM   #3
1969Mach1
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I had the same problem with my mach 1, I replaced the pins and they have little washers too. You'll need about 2 people to do this job and a fair amount of room to extend your door. Pretty much take out off the old doors and washers put new ones and while your putting them on, make sure your door in lining up. =) It's solved my problem.

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Old 06-30-2002, 04:01 AM   #4
Vishnoff
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The hinges look fine under intial inspection, but I will have to take a closer look. As for how long the problem has been pestering, this is something that happemned recently and very quickly.
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Old 06-30-2002, 01:20 PM   #5
Rev
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If it happened quickly, My bet is that the adjustment slipped somehow. My 1st attempt would just be an adjustment . That's difficult to do by yourself but can be done. I did it using a floor jack under the door with a piece of wood and lots of padding between the jack wood, and and the bottom of the door. It took lots of trial and error (I believe it took all day), but I finally got everything lined up to my satisfaction. If you still can't allign the door correctly, then I would replace the hinges and try again. My $.02.


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Old 07-01-2002, 12:10 AM   #6
1969Mach1
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Quote:
Originally posted by Rev
If it happened quickly, My bet is that the adjustment slipped somehow. My 1st attempt would just be an adjustment . That's difficult to do by yourself but can be done. I did it using a floor jack under the door with a piece of wood and lots of padding between the jack wood, and and the bottom of the door. It took lots of trial and error (I believe it took all day), but I finally got everything lined up to my satisfaction. If you still can't allign the door correctly, then I would replace the hinges and try again. My $.02.


Rev
Yup I forgot to mention we (my dad and I) also used a jack, we're getting new door skins so we didn't care we scratched it but if I wasn't there would of been alot of padding too. lol Yeh take out the pins and check to see if they are ok. I don't think they go for that much so it may not be a bad idea to change them while your at it if you want.

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§am.
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1969 Mustang Mach 1**Sold**
351-4V Windsor, 4 Speed
MACH 1 - Moving At The Speed Of Sound.

1979 Mustang Indianapolis 500 Pace Car **For Sale - Email me for Info**
302-2V, 3-Speed Auto
One of 2,106 made
One of 405 sent to Canada.
Yes those are caution lights, and No you can't pass me when there on.

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Old 07-01-2002, 02:27 PM   #7
Jeff65
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An inch is a very long way out of adjustment. A 1/16" of an inch would be all that's tolerable. Here's what can happen:

a. the striker plate is out of adjustment...thats the pin on the body side. It can slip around if the screws aren't tight or someone has removed the spacer from behind the striker plate. The spacer is deliberately produced with a rough surface so it grips the body and the striker when the screws are tight. Make sure its tight and hasn't slipped out. Here's what to do:

Slowly close door examining how the door fits at the bottom edge and at the top edge. If the door sits squarely in the opening, loosen the screws and position the striker where it needs to be, tighten and try the door latch. Repeat adjustment until the door closes properly. If the door is not a good fit in the body opening, the hinges need adjustment first.

b. the hinges are out of adjustment. In this case, the door will not fit well in the door opening. First check the hinges for wear. Open the door, lift up on the rear edge and see if there's any vertical give to the hinges. There should be no perceptable give in the hinges. As soon as you lift on the door, the body of the car should resist the movement. When you release the lift on the door it shouldn't drop. If there is slop, the hinges need replacement or rebuilding. New hinges and repair kits are available at Mustang shops. Any body shop can assist with installation of hinges. Note: body shops charge by the hour so its cheaper to replace hinges rather than repair them.

c. bad news your car is heavily corroded. When the frame rails of the car are heavily corroded, the car can "banana" in the center and make it impossible to get good door alignment. It takes a lot of effort and money to replace the rocker panels and frame rails to correct this problem. Much cheaper to find another car and use yours as a donor for the good parts it has.
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